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12,691Joined: 2 Sep 2007From: Calgary

Antonio Navarro's story speaks of the uglier side of what is happening as B.C. targets the Philippines as a source of labour to ease its shortages.

In a nutshell, unscrupulous agents are charging some temporary foreign workers like Navarro illegal, but very common, placement fees. Then, in cahoots with employers and other agents, they are duping these workers with bogus job offers, leaving them in a new country with no income, significant debt and precarious visa situations.

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12,691Joined: 2 Sep 2007From: Calgary

The City of Richmond and Vancouver International Airport are at risk of being washed out as a result of rising sea levels, flooding and more frequent storm patterns, a climate researcher says.

Ian Walker, of the University of Victoria, says Canada has the longest coastline in the world and more than 80 per cent of it is submerging due to rising sea levels. But even areas where the sea level is stable are at risk, he says, because of the greater frequency of storms, particularly on the Pacific coast.

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12,691Joined: 2 Sep 2007From: Calgary

More trouble for the Vancouver-based Freedom Investment Club, this time from the B.C. Financial Institutions Commission.

On Wednesday, FICOM issued a cease-and-desist order against the club and various related parties after learning they were promoting investments in subprime mortgage properties in the United States without being licensed under the B.C. Real Estate Act.

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12,691Joined: 2 Sep 2007From: Calgary

Federal Natural Resources Minister Gary Lunn's whirlwind pre-election tour, which included stops for five separate engagements around the region yesterday, included the announcement of $225,000 in funding for the Greater Victoria Development Agency.

Lunn, the MP for Saanich-Gulf Islands, admitted to reporters he was intent on making some announcements this week before an election is likely to be called. Although he couldn't pinpoint the key GVDA initiatives that piqued his interest, he did say it was important to fund organizations that promote economic development.

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12,691Joined: 2 Sep 2007From: Calgary

The average price of a single-family house in Greater Victoria slid to $549,914 in August, almost a five per cent drop from July and the lowest average since spring of last year.

Fewer sales and a rising inventory have had their effect on the capital region's real estate, Tony Joe, president of the Victoria Real Estate Board, said yesterday. "It causes things to soften a little bit," he said.

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12,691Joined: 2 Sep 2007From: Calgary

Dear Condo Smarts: Is there a way to deal with the illegal rental of part of a strata lot?

Our strata in Esquimalt has 45 townhouses, 20 of them have basements. Three owners in our strata have decided to sublet their basements and set up illegal suites.

Our strata corporation does not prohibit rentals, but our bylaws do require that each townhouse may be occupied by one family. The rentals have resulted in parking problems, conflicts with neighbours and, in one case, an aggressive dog that has since been seized by the pound. Are there any other regulations that we can enforce that might help us resolve this problem?

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12,691Joined: 2 Sep 2007From: Calgary

An open house is no substitute for a public hearing, say opponents of Western Forest Products' plans to subdivide land around Jordan River, Shirley and Otter Point.

The Capital Regional District and lawyers for the Sea-to-Sea Greenbelt Society have called on Highways Ministry approving officer Bob Wylie to hold public hearings before deciding on the future of the lands west of Sooke. But no decision has yet been made because the company has not yet submitted all the necessary information, said ministry spokesman Dave Crebo.

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12,691Joined: 2 Sep 2007From: Calgary

Almost twice as many single-family houses are for sale on Vancouver Island north of the Malahat compared to last year, the Vancouver Island Real Estate Board said yesterday.

Despite skyrocketing inventory and fewer sales the average price of a house, at $345,722, was slightly higher last month than it was in August of last year, when it was $339,975. Last month's average is, however, below July's at $354,120, the board said.

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12,691Joined: 2 Sep 2007From: Calgary

Logging B.C.'s old-growth forests would produce chump change compared to the economic benefit of letting them stand, says a new study.

Researchers at Simon Fraser University say a tweak in perspective can reveal the true value of a forest. Rather than value trees as lumber, researchers estimated the worth of forests as carbon storehouses, recreation sites and sources of products other than timber -- for example, wild mushrooms.

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12,691Joined: 2 Sep 2007From: Calgary

It's a buyer's market in real estate around British Columbia, according to a new Landcor Data Corp. report, although company president Rudy Nielsen reckons buyers are just sitting on their hands for the time being.

Landcor tracked lower sales and slower price gains in most markets around the province to the end of June. The median prices of some home types dipped into negative territory from the first to the second quarter, Landcor found.

"I'm not an economist," Nielsen said, "but it seems everybody is sitting right now on their money, sitting back to see what's going to happen [with the market]."